Best Places48721, MI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 48721, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
48721 ranks 24,003rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low disaster risk by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 48721
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
48721's strengths and weaknesses
Where 48721 ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 48721 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 48721
A household needs to earn about $54,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 48721 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $56,944, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 48721's effective rate of 0.81%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 48721
48721 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 48721.
Who works in 48721, and how
Work in 48721 centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 48721
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 48721.
What the weather is like in 48721, month by month
48721 sees roughly 68 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 31, with lows near 14. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31° | 23° | 14° |
| April | 54° | 41° | 30° |
| July | 84° | 70° | 56° |
| October | 62° | 50° | 39° |
Flying in and out of 48721
The nearest airport, Alpena County Regional, is about 22 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Detroit Metro Wayne County, about 179 miles away.
The best schools in and around 48721
Schools across 48721 average a D+, better than 16% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Sanborn ElementaryC− · 29% proficient
- Alcona Elementary SchoolD+ · 23% proficient
- Lincoln ElementaryD− · 12% proficient
Top middle schools
- Thunder Bay Junior High SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Alpena High SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Alcona Community High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 48721 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
48721 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 48721 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 48721
Is 48721 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 48721 ranks 24,003rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low disaster risk, low crime, and clean air, and lowest on a weak job market and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 48721 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $206,400. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $56,944 median income, cost of living beats 28% of zip codes.
Is 48721 safe?
Yes, 48721 is safer than 97% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $171 per resident a year.
Compare 48721 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 48721. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 48721 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
48721 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 48721: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 48721: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 48721: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 48721: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
48721 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.